Andray Blatche declines $1.43 million option to stay with Nets

Andray Blatche has declined his option to stay with the Nets next season. Photo by Rob Abruzzese.

The Blatche-era could be over for the Brooklyn Nets

It looks like Andray Blatche might not be back in Brooklyn next season as he has declined his $1.43 million player option to return to the Nets next year and he will become an unrestricted free agent, according to David Aldridge of TNT.

Blatche earned the veterans minimum during each of the last two seasons after he was amnestied by the Washington Wizards. He had problems off the court and couldn’t stay in shape to play consistently on it. By the end of his run in Washington they were the worst team in the NBA and Blatche was booed nightly.

In Brooklyn he had a resurgence. At least on the court. In two seasons, he averaged 18.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.8 steals per 36 minutes over 155 games and 15 starts. Of the court, he still had trouble as there was a sexual assault in his hotel suite (he was never charged) and Jason Kidd had to unofficially suspend him from the team for a brief time this year.

So it’s going to be interesting to see what happens to Blatche. The Nets can technically offer him as much as four years and $25 million, but they haven’t done much to express an interest in keeping him if he did in fact decline the offer. Obviously, by declining the offer, he seems to expect more than the veterans minimum.

Seeing as how Blatche could likely be out the door with this news it’s hard not to have mixed emotions. Blatche was just so…Blatche. He was like a schizophrenic out there. One minute he was out there making tremendous spin moves on offense that would make most big-men snarl with jealousy and the next he would make some boneheaded play to cost them the game.

I can’t help but think back to the Nets series against the Toronto Raptors where he launched a last second pass over Deron Williams‘ head to lost the game. I also can’t help but think back to games like last Jan. 20 where the Nets blew out the Manhattan Knicks behind 19 points and 12 rebounds from Blatche. He was like that — bad at times, good at others, mostly good overall and inconsistent enough to drive you mad.

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